Context Of Migration Research Articles

Highly educated Ukrainian migrants in Poland prior to 2022: education, work and integration efforts

ABSTRACT Drawing on recent original qualitative research, this paper focuses on the under-researched area of highly skilled migration in the relatively new migratory context of Ukrainian migrants to Poland. Commonly, migrants from Ukraine have been found to work in basic low-paid jobs and in an informal, non-regulated capacity; thus, often falling prey to precarious and insecure employment. However, this article focuses on career pathways of highly educated migrants from Ukraine in Poland and explores how they take advantage of their education and qualifications. The analysis is focused on individual-level factors. The paper discusses the findings of 29 individual in-depth interviews. Among the respondents, 15 were working in occupations requiring higher education, and 14 worked below their education. This article contributes to the literature on the use of qualifications of migrant workers from Ukraine in Poland. We found that knowledge of the Polish language, and individual attitudes influence migrants’ use of education/qualifications. The relationship between family composition and the labour market situation of people with higher education is not clearly established in this research. We hope these findings will support the integration efforts of the newly arrived forced migrants from Ukraine in Poland and beyond.

Building Home in Exile: The Role of Intangible Cultural Heritage, Crafts, and Material Culture Among Resettled Syrians in Liverpool, UK

Since the onset of the Syrian conflict in 2011, millions of Syrians have sought refuge globally, with thousands resettling in the UK. Despite their displacement, Syrians have brought with them a rich array of inherited knowledge and traditions, collectively known as intangible cultural heritage (ICH). The construction of domestic spaces by these settlers and their struggle to feel at home have emerged as important topics in migration studies, particularly when housing issues are considered as a critical aspect of their transcultural social engagement and the evolving boundaries of their identity and belonging. However, the role of ICH, along with the related crafts and movable objects, in the home-making practices of forced migrants remains under-researched. This gap is especially significant given that the UK recently ratified the 2003 UNESCO Convention on the safeguarding of ICH after a decade-long delay. Through in-depth semi-structured interviews conducted in the interviewees’ native Arabic within their home environments and supported by an observational study, this research explores how resettled Syrians in Liverpool integrate traditional ICH practices into their new homes, focusing on the dynamic relationship between the intangible and built heritage. By examining how intangible knowledge and movable objects interplay in creating a ‘Syrian home’, this study contributes to discussions on community engagement and the role of memory in conservation. The findings underscore the importance of ICH in maintaining cultural continuity and identity in the diaspora, providing insights into the inclusive heritage conservation practices in migrant contexts. This research highlights two key insights: first, the essential role that ICH, along with the associated crafts and movable objects, plays in constructing new homes in the diaspora, particularly in how these items serve as the carriers of cultural identity and continuity; and second, the symbolic significance of Syrian homes, especially their interior designs and decorations, as reflections of a blend of sociocultural practices that Syrians are committed to preserving.

The underlying causes of differential migration: assumptions, hypotheses, and predictions.

Mechanisms governing the migratory decisions of birds have long fascinated ecologists and sparked considerable debate. Identifying factors responsible for variation in migration distance, also known as differential migration, has been a popular approach to understanding the mechanisms underlying migratory behaviour more generally. However, research progress has been slowed by the continued testing of overlapping, non-mechanistic, and circular predictions among a small set of historically entrenched hypotheses. We highlight the body size hypothesis and suggest that the predictions commonly tested have impeded progress because body size relationships with migration distance are predictions made by several distinct hypotheses with contrasting mechanisms. The cost of migration itself has not been adequately accounted for in most hypotheses, and we propose two flight efficiency hypotheses with time- and energy-minimizing mechanisms that allow individuals to mitigate the risks inherent to longer migrations. We also advance two conceptual versions of the social dominance hypothesis based on two distinct underlying mechanisms related to distance minimization and food maximization that will help clarify the role of competition in driving migratory decisions. Overall, we describe and refine 12 mechanistic hypotheses proposed to explain differential migration (along with several other special-case hypotheses), seven of which have underlying mechanisms related to food limitation as past research has identified this to be an important driver of differential migration. We also thoroughly reviewed 145 publications to assess the amount of support for 10 critical assumptions underlying alternative hypotheses for differential migration in birds. Our review reveals that surprisingly few studies explicitly evaluate assumptions within a differential migration context. Generating and testing strong predictions and critical assumptions underlying mechanisms of alternative hypotheses will improve our ability to differentiate among these explanations of differential migration. Additionally, future intraspecific progress will be greatest if investigators continue to focus on mechanisms underlying variation in migration distance within rather than among demographic classes, as previous research has found differing mechanisms to be responsible for differential migration among demographic classes. Interspecifically, a thorough comparative analysis that seeks to explain variation in migration distance among species would broaden both our understanding of the mechanisms regulating current differential migration patterns and those that led to the evolution of migration more generally. Collectively, we provide a framework that, together with advances in animal-borne tracking and other technology, can be used to advance our understanding of the causes of differential migration distance, and migratory decisions more generally.

Privileged transmigrant motherhood and its practices of distinction

ABSTRACT Transnational motherhood and Latin-American migrants in the U.S. have been explored in the literature primarily in the context of labor migration and marginalized identities. Existing research delves into how mothers negotiate the challenges and opportunities posed by migration in their parenting journeys. However, scholars advocate to look closer at how the social location of individuals create specific sets of experiences. Using the lenses of transnationalism and translocational positionalities, I look at the motherhood identities of 32 mothers in the U.S. who belong to higher socioeconomic levels in Colombia. I find that through their motherhood practices and discourses, participants perform class distinctions to distance themselves from negative stereotypes associated with migrants from Latin America and white U.S. American culture. Addressing the nuances of motherhood, class, and race within the context of migration is a step toward understanding how identities and ideologies transcend transnational boundaries and the role they play in simultaneously fostering and hindering social inequalities.

Transnational mobility and precarity in the shadow of pandemics: Chinese migrants in Africa

ABSTRACT Through the lens of the Covid-19 pandemic, this paper examines the conditions of and responses to (im)mobilities and precarity among Chinese migrants in Africa. It emphasizes a relational and relative understanding of mobility–immobility as well as precarity–agency within the broader context of transnational migration. The empirical findings are based on in-depth, semi-structured interviews with Chinese migrants living in Ethiopia, Zambia, Republic of Congo and Sierra Leone during the pandemic. The analysis reveals a reconfiguration of (im)mobilities, not only between China and African host countries but also across different African destinations. This interplay between mobility and immobility exposes the dilemmas Chinese migrants faced during the pandemic while shedding light on the precarious life-worlds they navigate even in normal times. Although the pandemic exacerbated the precarity of their already unstable lives, it has also created spaces for community support, entrepreneurial ventures, and critical reflections on their businesses practices and life plans.

Acculturation and self-management abilities of well-being among older Moroccans in the Netherlands

Abstract Background Migration involves a variety of stressors. Their accumulation over time may negatively impact migrants’ well-being. The extent that older migrants can integrate into a host society may determine their readiness to adopt behaviors such as self-management of well-being. Research regarding this relation among older Moroccans, one of the largest migrant groups in the Netherlands, has not been examined. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between acculturation and self-management abilities of well-being among older Moroccans and to examine differences in subgroups. Methods This cross-sectional study included 290 older Moroccans (≥ 65) living in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Linear regression was applied to explore associations between acculturation (attachment to Moroccan and Dutch cultures) and self-management abilities of well-being. Independent samples t-tests were used to test differences between subgroups. Results Older Moroccans who received low education were found to be less attached to the Dutch culture [3.24 (0.72) vs. 3.54 (0.73); p = 0.016]. They were also poorer self-managers of their well-being [2.60 (0.59) vs. 2.86 (0.58); p = 0.012], along with those with multi-morbidity [2.55 (0.60) vs. 2.77 (0.54); p = 0.006] and those lacking comprehension of Dutch [2.46 (0.56) vs. 2.69 (0.59); p = 0.011]. Self-management abilities of well-being had a negative association with multi-morbidity (β = −0.18, p = 0.007) and lack of Dutch comprehension (β = −0.16, p = 0.031), and a positive association with attachment to Moroccan (β = 0.17, p = 0.012) and Dutch (β = 0.18, p = 0.010) cultures. Conclusions Findings indicate that attachment to Moroccan and Dutch cultures is beneficial for older Moroccans’ self-management of well-being. Efforts need to support older migrants’ integration for them to adequately function and feel at home. Interventions promoting integration and self-management need to consider the characteristics of older migrant populations Key messages • Attachment to origin and host cultures benefits older migrants’ self-management of well-being. The cultural context of older migrants needs to be considered when promoting values of self-management. • Differences in acculturation and self-management of well-being existed between older migrant subgroups. Interventions promoting these values should account for the diversity that exists among migrants.

Defining, Measuring, and Increasing “Rootedness” in the High Migration Context of Honduras

Executive Summary The notion of “rootedness” in the sociology and migration literature is not well defined despite its increasing use by academics and, especially, practitioners. Defining and measuring rootedness has been problematic given that it is often operationalized as, but is not fully captured by, a concept related to social capital, community attachment, and participation. Rootedness is also often thought of as solely the absence of the desire to migrate. However, we argue that an individual’s desire to stay can be just as important as the well-documented “root causes” of migration; that is, economic poverty, insecurity, and strong migration networks. We propose a working definition of the concept of rootedness based on an empirical analysis of data from a nationally representative survey in the high migration context of Honduras. We find that rootedness can both be defined as and measured by an individual’s agreement with the idea that where they live is their “true home” and that they “see a good future” in that location. We further find that rootedness can be increased via a strong sense of security (not only the absence of victimization) and active community support for youth. Programs and policies should therefore promote security that goes beyond just preventing crime and fosters a general sense of wellbeing. In particular, programs should promote efforts to ensure that youth are supported by incorporating them in community decision-making, listening to what youth propose, promoting youth participation, and supporting youth leadership. Importantly, income is not strongly associated with this definition of rootedness. This finding highlights the important role of non-economic factors in migration decisions. Even when income increases, it does not necessarily increase the aspiration to stay. To be rooted, as we conceive of it, means more than having sufficient income. In summary, the paper examines and offers a new understanding of the concept of “rootedness,” which speaks to why some members of a community want to migrate and others desire to remain in their home communities. Fleshing out our understanding of rootedness as a way to talk about and measure the desire to remain is therefore crucial to realizing the “right” or “freedom” to stay at home.

Plexin/Semaphorin Antagonism Orchestrates Collective Cell Migration, Gap Closure and Organ sculpting by Contact-Mesenchymalization.

Cell behavior emerges from the intracellular distribution of properties like protrusion, contractility and adhesion. Thus, characteristic emergent rules of collective migration can arise from cell-cell contacts locally tweaking architecture - orchestrating self-regulation during development, wound healing, and cancer progression. The new Drosophila testis-nascent-myotube-system allows dissection of contact-dependent migration in vivo at high resolution. Here, we describe a process driving gap-closure during migration: Contact-mesenchymalization via the axon guidance factor Plexin A. This is crucial for testis myotubes to migrate as a continuous sheet, allowing normal sculpting-morphogenesis. Cells must stay filopodial and dynamically ECM-tethered near cell-cell contacts to spread while collectively moving. Our data suggest Semaphorin 1B acts as a Plexin A antagonist, fine-tuning activation. Our data reveal a contact-dependent mechanism to maintain sheet-integrity during migration, driving organ-morphogenesis using a highly conserved pathway. This is relevant for understanding mesenchymal organ-sculpting and gap-closure in migratory contexts like angiogenesis.

Contested categories in the context of international migration: introduction to the special issue

ABSTRACT In this introduction to the special issue Contested Categories in the Context of International Migration, we argue for the importance of critically engaging with state-created categories and classification systems. We advocate doing so in the particularly convoluted context of international migration, where states use categories to manage migrants’ entry, reception, and residence, making categorisation extremely consequential for individual migrants, even though bureaucratic documentation and everyday understandings of categories often differ greatly between migrants’ home countries and receiving states. We outline some of the scholarship on categorisation that has inspired our thinking, discuss why migration is such an important and generative site for examining categories and processes of categorisation, and finally consider how the contributions in this special issue attest to this.

Intimate citizenship and compensatory masculinities

This study explores the complex conditions of cross-border marriages between Syrian refugee women and Jordanian men in Mafraq, Jordan, within the context of South-South migration. Through qualitative interviews in Mughayyir, Raba', and Zaatari, the research examines specific gendered and raced relations shaped by discourses and practices of femininity and masculinity. Racialized gendered dynamics portray the strategic mobilization of non-hegemonic and 'compensatory masculinities' among Jordanian men in response to Syrian women's perceived vulnerability. Drawing on Ken Plummer's 'intimate citizenship,' the study scrutinizes marriage decision-making entangled with political discourses, revealing the imbrication of personal lives with globalized politics, embedded within the gendered patriarchal demands of the hosting society. In contrast to studies on North-South cross-border marriages, this research focuses on the South, shedding light on non-migrant husbands' experiences and their compensatory strategies. The 'intimate citizenship' framework illuminates challenges surrounding desirable and undesirable unions within displaced Syrian women and Jordanian men, unveiling the politicization and stigma associated with cross-border marriages. By addressing societal judgments and introducing 'heterosexual capital' and 'compensatory masculinity,' the research enriches our understanding of South-South migration complexities, prompting a reevaluation of existing frameworks and fostering a more nuanced discussion.

Positive character and psychological well-being: A nuanced examination among adolescents from diverse rural-urban and migration contexts.

Positive character is an integral component of positive youth development that relates to psychological well-being among adolescents, yet the literature has largely overlooked its within-group variation. This study examined the latent profiles of positive character and explored their variation in psychological well-being across four adolescent groups (i.e., migrant, left-behind, rural local, and urban local adolescents) within each profile. A diverse sample of 15,895 adolescents from 10 provinces of China (Meanage = 13.16, SD = 2.53; 47.5% girls) completed a cross-sectional survey on positive character and psychological well-being in 2017. Latent profile analysis (LPA) was conducted based on four positive characters. We investigated the distribution of each positive character profile across subgroups, as well as if and how the psychological well-being varied across different adolescent groups within each profile. LPA revealed three subgroups, including "Thriving" (53.6%), "Moderate" (39.1%), and "Lagging" (7.4%) positive character profiles. The "Thriving" profile was more prevalent among the urban local (58.5%) and migrant (55.8%) adolescent groups, while the "Lagging" profile was most prevalent among the left-behind adolescent group (11.6%). Urban local and migrant adolescents tended to show better psychological well-being compared to rural local and left-behind adolescents, and the disparities were generally more pronounced under the "Thriving" profile as compared to the "Moderate" and "Lagging" profiles. Three positive character profiles were captured among four groups of Chinese adolescents varied in parental migration status and rural-urban residency. Tailored youth development programs are needed for different groups of adolescents varying in positive character profiles.

‘Between the Devil and Deep-Blue Sea’: Comparing the Extraterritorial Application of the ECHR and the ICCPR in the Protection of Migrants at Sea

The concept of jurisdiction is often said to encapsulate the very essence of human rights “qua normative relationship between rights holders and institutions as dutybearers” (Besson, 2012; 860). Twenty-first century human rights jurisprudence has highlighted one of the most contentious issues in relation to jurisdiction: the limits that human rights place on State behaviour outside national territory. In the context of migration, the extraterritorial application of human rights is a particularly critical concern. Loss of life on the high seas, refoulement at sea, and the striking systematic ineptitude of search and rescue operations by European countries have placed the debate on extraterritoriality at the heart of the human rights discourse on migrants and refugees. This Paper will compare and contrast extraterritoriality at the European Court of Human Rights and the Human Rights Committee (HRCttee), in order to put their jurisprudence into perspective and assess the current state of the law. A functional account of jurisdiction will be supported, whereby the State should protect human rights wherever in the world it operates, and whenever it can reasonably do so. Through a comparative analysis, I will argue that the principles of universality and effectiveness render extraterritorial applicability a necessary doctrine in human rights law. By juxtaposing the ECtHR with the HRCttee, I will illustrate the wide acceptance of extraterritoriality in the migration context, highlight the needs for improvement in future jurisprudence, and justify the functional approach to human rights protection that this Paper advocates.

Intention to Use Primary Healthcare Services among South-South Migrants.

(1) Background: To evaluate a model based on the right-to-health approach, considering the impact of associated factors on the future utilization of primary healthcare services among international migrants in Chile. (2) Methods: A cross-sectional design was employed to survey 499 South American migrants residing in Chile. Ad-hoc questionnaires were used to assess their experiences related to the right to health, perceived discrimination, income, education, length of residence, age, marital status, gender, migration status, among others. Correlation analyses were conducted, followed by path analysis with significant variables to assess the fit of two models. (3) Results: Ten variables were identified as significant for path analysis. Among the two evaluated models, the final model identified six variables with significant direct and indirect effects. Among them, the availability, accessibility, acceptability, and quality of healthcare services were positively associated with the future intention to use them. Additionally, perceived racial and ethnic discrimination also had a positive effect on the intention to use healthcare services, suggesting a possible adaptive response to adversity, exhibiting acceptable goodness-of-fit indices (χ2 =241,492; p < 0.001; CFI = 0.913; TLI = 0.82; RMSEA = 0.062; SRMR = 0.05). (4) Conclusions: While the initial model provides valuable insights, it is essential to broaden the analysis to include other factors influencing the specific context of international migrants.

Immigrants in the Transnational Far Right: Integration through Racisms and Negotiating White Supremacy in a Migratory Context

Despite the historical and contemporary instances of immigrants and their descendants engaging with the far-right, whether through long-distance nationalism or country of residence politics, migration scholarship has surprisingly paid very little attention to this process. In this paper we argue that insufficient engagement with instances of the far-right attracting and mobilizing immigrants and ethnic minorities is a theoretical omission in both migration scholarship and scholarship of the far-right and is related to the reproduction of reified notions of “majority”’ and “minority,” normative assumptions about immigrants’ political activism as inevitably progressive, and methodological nationalism implicit in studying the far-right from a political science perspective. Through an analysis of a case study of Polish immigrants and their descendants in Britain, we demonstrate that these omissions can be bridged by paying more attention to relational processes of constructions of whiteness, the role of systemic racism, and the increasing transnationalization of the far-right. The cases we describe, captured through the notion of integration-through-racisms, are therefore a symptom of both increasing complexities of migration-driven diversity with threatened white privilege as the focus and dynamic changes in global far-right ideologies and strategies.

The Importance of Accounting for the Dead in Migration

Executive Summary This article highlights the importance of accounting for the dead in migration contexts, from international humanitarian law (IHL), international human rights law (IHRL), and forensic perspectives. Starting by reviewing obligations under IHL and IHRL for the processes of accounting, the article discusses forensic action and the role that accounting can play to protect the dead and clarify the fate and whereabouts of the missing for their families. Considering the complexity of missing and deceased migrant cases, this problem must be approached from several complementary angles, including States codifying international legal obligations related to accounting for the dead in domestic legal or policy frameworks; developing national mechanisms to collect, centralize, and report disaggregated information on migrant deaths; addressing migrant deaths from a public health perspective; pursuing identification efforts including participating in transnational coordination mechanisms; developing strong partnerships with civil society actors; and coupling accounting initiatives with policies that promote the search for missing migrants.

Borders: Exclude or Relate?

Executive Summary US political discourse characterizes the US-Mexico border as a site of threat and, of necessity, exclusion. This frame ignores the importance of borders to economies, families, and culture in our increasingly interconnected world. Moreover, it leads to policies that place people at risk of victimization and death. In conceiving of the border solely in terms of exclusion, nations forego the opportunity to strengthen relationships across borders. This paper argues that the politics of humane migration require a vision of borders as sites of encounter, engagement, and relationship, rather than solely exclusion. This reconceptualization of the US-Mexico border, in particular, would strengthen relationships across borders, and prioritize cooperation between Latin America/the Caribbean and the United States, starting with regulated legal flows. It would also respond to the shared contexts of migration, including contraband in arms and drugs, criminal violence, and climate change. It articulates an alternative vision of borders as a “commons” in which mutual needs can be addressed (a commons is an issue or resource in which every one has access and involvement). Migration itself provides a perfect example of such a need. It takes place in a political climate partially but powerfully shaped by racism and classism. Thus, it has become a polarized “issue” that appears insolvable. In fact, it may not be a problem at all. Rather, in our current demographic-economic situation, as well as for our cultural well-being, migration should be treated as an asset. Insofar as it needs to be addressed, this paper delineates many possibilities. The options are not perfect and magical — the challenges are hard and diverse — but they an advance a vision of a shared cross-border space on migration. That might be a crucial move, not only for migration, but along a path that recognizes relationships and commitments of many kinds across the hemisphere and world. Recognition is not enough; real change in resources and power needs to follow. But a vision of connection rather than exclusion provides the political starting point needed for change to happen. In every political instance in which borders are used to frame migration in terms of who, how, and how much to exclude, connectedness loses ground. A politics of humane migration can only emerge if rooted in a positive vision of borders as sites of engagement and encounter.

Unrealised aspiration: Migrants’ intergroup relations in China

Although migrants wish to make friends with local urbanites, they may not eventually realise their aspirations. This paper considers the mismatch between migrants’ intention and intergroup relations in China to reveal the gap between aspirations and outcomes. The instrumental variable results suggest that residing in migrant-concentrated neighbourhoods can lead to a gap between migrants’ aspired and real intergroup relations. This confirms the negative role of neighbourhood ethnic concentration in a domestic migrant context. Moreover, having a rural hukou indirectly hinders migrants from bridging the gap by lowering their socioeconomic status, demonstrating the disadvantage of rural migrants in the socialisation field. We highlight that migrants in China continue to face the challenges to achieving their integration aspirations.

Internal migration and multidimensional wellbeing: a case study of North-South migration in Ghana

Abstract Migration is widely regarded as a principal form of activity available to many of the world’s poor to improve their household’s standard of living. This paper investigates whether and in what ways internal migrants benefit from moving within Ghana’s North-South migration context. This research uses an innovative multidimensional wellbeing framework to assess the effects of migration on migrants’ wellbeing based on six domains: living standards, health, education, community vitality, environmental resilience, and governance. The wellbeing survey of 251 northern Ghanaian migrants working in the informal economic sector within the Sunyani municipality discovered that although most migrants reported improved living standards, a majority could not attain overall wellbeing due to low health and education wellbeing scores. Exploring the relationship between income and wellbeing across domains, the study found a weak positive association, and the complex interplay of factors beyond income was evident. This study challenges the conventional perspective that equates income with the attainment of wellbeing and argues that a multidimensional wellbeing framework permits a more nuanced understanding of the impacts of migration. It highlights the need for the government to actively monitor and address the wellbeing of internal migrants within the Ghanaian context.

Multilingual and multimodal methods to examining the situated communication among deaf children and their caregivers

ABSTRACT This paper discusses methodologies for examining the multilingual language experiences of young deaf children that are sensitive to different cultural contexts of childhood, caregiving and language practices. We argue that in the context of early support, the combined use of situated multilingual and multimodal approaches to examine and assess individual language resources can provide rich and reliable information about individual communicative repertoires in their given context. This approach extends commonly used monolingual and unimodal research and assessment tools that lack the inclusivity of reach and granularity of analysis needed to inform contextually appropriate early intervention for multilingual and migrant deaf learners. We illustrate the potential of these methods using case study examples from multimodal video-based and ethnographic data gathering and analysis techniques deployed across three projects in different multilingual contexts, in Ghana and the UK. We use these case studies to examine the methodological choices, challenges and opportunities of researching different multilingual environments in culturally sensitive ways as a basis for supporting and assessing the language and communication development of young deaf children in multilingual and migrant contexts. We discuss how the resulting new knowledge base can extend Euro-Western epistemologies that are currently leading models of early intervention and support.

Making moral and economic inferior others: Everyday racialization of Asian migrants in South Korea

Recent studies have explored racialization among groups with subtle or no phenotypical differences; however, a crucial connection to racial capitalism remains unexplored. This article investigates the everyday racialization of migrants in Wongok-dong, a multicultural neighbourhood in South Korea, using narratives gathered from research participants through interviews, participant observations, and group discussions. Specifically, the study examines how Asian migrants, including ethnic Korean return migrants, are racialized attached to negative meanings such as fly-tipping, backward, and poor in host Korean residents’ narratives. Furthermore, the study scrutinizes the influence of the hierarchical worldview of ‘seonjinguk’ (developed/advanced country) and ‘hujinguk’ (underdeveloped/backward country) on the host Korean residents’ perceptions, reinforcing the Korean residents’ feeling of superiority over Asian migrants. In analyzing the Koreans’ narratives within the broader political-economic context of Asian labour migration, the author argues that Asian migrants are viewed as morally and economically inferior by the host Koreans in everyday discourse. By linking Asian labour migration as a facet of racial capitalism and developmental worldview and ordinary people’s perceptions of Asian migrants in Korea, this research deepens our understanding of racialization ‘beyond colour and the West’ and its ties to the broader discursive and political economic system.